September 6, 2012

5:41 Central Time: I'm starting now, because it's Tammy Baldwin, my congressperson. She's running to take the seat Herb Kohl has been sitting in for oh, so long. She tells us of Wisconsin's motto, "Forward" (which Obama is using as his motto), and she finds a few opportunities to repeat "Forward." She's talking about "the Wisconsin I know" and "the America I love."

5:51: It's LBGT time. A video, with Obama saying we need to see a man with a man or a woman with a woman as equally worthy as a man and a woman. Then a young man named Zack Wahls — from Iowa — says he was raised by 2 moms, and: "I'm awesome at putting the seat down."

5:55: A really sweet and charming video about the woman who started the "Fired up/Ready to go" chant in Greenwood, South Carolina, some 4 years ago, Edith S. Childs. Ah, it's on line: here. Watch it. I liked that.

5:58: "They really got through the gay stuff quick," I observe.

6:01: Jim Messina, the Obama campaign manager is begging us for money. There's a sob in his voice. He sounds genuinely desperate.

6:28: Foo Fighters emote. [ADDED: Meade says: "This is kind of depressing music, and it goes along with the whole convention.]

6:32: The Foo Fighters are singing "I never wanna die" over and over. It's this song, "Walk":

I never wanna die
I'm on my knees
I never wanna die
I'm dancing on my grave
I'm running through the fire
Forever, whatever
I never wanna die
I never wanna leave

No, no... that's not an argument for a politician's reelection.

6:34: Now, there's this really gloomy video. Faces on a dark background. Woebegone people agonizing about how they "did everything right," and yet they are "one mistake away from losing the little that we have."

6: 47: An. act.tress. Kerry. Wash.ing.ton. I'd never heard of her before, but she's emoting big time, like she's talking to a bunch of idiots who never think about politics. But politics is thinking about us, she says ominously. Uh, we're the people watching the convention. We're not your Hollywood friends. "The other side" — "side," pronounced as a series of trembling, upscaling notes — "wants. to. take. our. voi.ces. a.way. and render us. invisible" — big wagging finger — "but we" — "we," rendered in the trembling, upward 4-syllables for a 1-syllable word, like she's really trying to scare us — "are not. invisible." Her doe eyes scan the crowd. Did they understand? Did they com.pre.hend? Did they fath.om the depths of. my. words? [ADDED FROM THE COMMENTS: Fiftyville said: "I loved Kerry Washington's statement... 'You may not be thinking about politics, but politics is thinking about you.' If you have to steal, Dems, why steal from Yakov Smirnoff?"]

6:57: Scarlett Johansson. So the beautiful actresses are all getting dumped in an early hour. Unlike Kerry Washington, the actress Johansson is able to act like a normal person. "We are the generation who feel our voices haven't been heard," she says, repeating something Chelsea Clinton said earlier in the convention. Johansson enthuses about voting. It's a speech that seems more appropriate to a bunch of young kids. And, sorry, I don't understand the basis for this whole generation believing that their "voices haven't been heard." You get to vote. Like everyone else. Why do you feel there's more of an entitlement than that? If you have something to say, say it. You kids have the whole internet. Twitter. YouTube. My generation didn't have that. What's this "no voice" business?

7:04: Debbie Wasserman Schultz aids a woman who is struggling to walk onto the stage. With great effort, she struggles to blurt out the words of the Pledge of Allegiance. My God, it's Gabby Giffords. Many tears run down many faces.

7:09: "As a Catholic woman, I take reproductive health seriously," says Caroline Kennedy, reading the script robotically. She complains about states putting restrictions on "access to reproductive health care."

7:13: Jennifer Granholm, "from the great state of Michigan, where the trees are just the right height." (She lifts Mitt Romney's gentle joke about home, and Meade and I disagree about whether she's showing some affection for her fellow Michigander.)

7:17: Granholm has a good (if unfair) line — referencing Romney's supposed lack of concern for auto-industry workers — "The cars get the elevator, and the workers get the shaft." You have to know that Romney had a car elevator installed in one of his homes.

7:21: It's "actress Eva Longoria." Not sure why Caroline Kennedy and Jennifer Granholm broke up the parade of actresses. Longoria sounds like an intelligent person who actually has followed politics in the normal way that people who like politics follow politics.

7:43: John Kerry. American exceptionalism demands an exceptional President, and that President is Barack Obama, he says.

8:05: As a tribute to servicemen and women goes on at the convention, email from Obama comes in, saying, "Ann -- Before I go on stage to accept the nomination, there's one thing I need to say... Can you pitch in $25 or more right now?"

8:44: Jill Biden warmed us up to think of Joe Biden as the embodiment of human caring, and now Joe Biden is doing the same for Barack Obama. He tells us he "loves" Obama. Obama was "gutsy."

9:40: Obama is giving his speech. Here's the whole text. His inflections are polished, but nothing is jumping out at me as different from what I've heard him say many times.

9:55: "We, the People, recognize that we have responsibilities as well as rights; that our destinies are bound together; that a freedom which only asks what’s in it for me, a freedom without a commitment to others, a freedom without love or charity or duty or patriotism, is unworthy of our founding ideals, and those who died in their defense." Is that controversial?

10:03: The word "hope" appears 15 times in his speech. The last 3 come near the end: "And I think about the young sailor I met at Walter Reed hospital, still recovering from a grenade attack that would cause him to have his leg amputated above the knee... He gives me hope. I don’t know what party [various heretofore mentioned] men and women belong to. I don’t know if they’ll vote for me. But I know that their spirit defines us. They remind me, in the words of Scripture, that ours is a 'future filled with hope.' And if you share that faith with me – if you share that hope with me – I ask you tonight for your vote." Other people give him hope, the Bible refers to hope, and if you hope like he hopes, you should vote for him. Because... hope!

10:17: The speech ends, and there's a flurry of confetti. No balloons, because an indoor presentation hadn't been planned. Obama steps forward and waves. There's a closeup of his face and I think I see his lip curl with a bit of disgust, and I rewind and ask Meade to interpret the face and he says: resignation. Subjectively, we think we see in his face that he knows he's going to lose. Michelle and Malia and Sasha come out, looking perfectly glossy and pretty, and then there's Biden and Jill and Mrs. Robinson and various other relatives, milling around, waving a bit, and then the long view of the stage shows they've clumped toward the rear wall. Why are they huddling there? The shots of the crowd show some ecstatic delegates — all women — and many stolid/dispirited faces — male and female. At one point there's a hitch in the Bruce Springsteen music — a silent gap — but then it plays again. And now they're gone.

10:26: The Cardinal wanders out to the lectern. He's got his benediction written out on folded sheets of paper. "Help us to see that a society's greatness is found, above all, in the respect it shows for the weakest and neediest among us." He thanks God for giving us those "inalienable rights — life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." He thanks God for "the gift of life" and asks that we be given "the courage to defend it." In subtle defiance of the convention's abortion-rights theme, he says: "We ask your benediction on those waiting to be born, that they may be welcomed and protected."

11:03: The Democrats didn't have anything oddball, like Clint Eastwood. Nothing surprising. Nothing to talk about. Speaking of nothing, on Intrade, Obama re-election shares today experienced a 0.0% change. Oh! I checked back, now he's down 0.2%. (Romney is up 0.7% on the day.)

11:12: I just realized I fast-forwarded through Charlie Crist. Looked like another white male governor. I forgot about the whole former-Republican thing. Does anyone really care?

I agree that Edith Childs is charming, but I found that video to be very sad. When you look at the difference between everyone's expectations 4 years ago, and the reality today, you see that Obama is all chant and no change. I'm fired up that Obama is "ready to go" out of the White House.

Personally, I favor legal gay marriage, and I couldn't disagree more with Obama's statement.

"we need to see a man with a man or a woman with a woman as equally worthy as a man and a woman" is neither a true statement, nor should it be a prerequisite for legal gay marriage.

We don't NEED TO SEE jack. It shouldn't matter how we FEEL about things. Different people will feel differently, and THAT IS THEIR RIGHT.

It's not the Federal Government's place to define marriage, EITHER by telling gay couples they can't have access to the same contracts and other aspects of our civil court system as straight couples, OR by telling people how we need to see things.

And frankly, the greatest barrier to legal gay marriage is this idea that government intends to force us all to feel a certain way about it.

How about we agree Pres. Obama can continue giving presidential speeches for the next four years, but Mitt Romney can do the actual work of being President. Pretty sure Pres. Obama would go for that. He'd still get all the adoration.

"Gay stuff is seriously not ready for prime time. Funny how all the way leftist stuff is getting shunted into the crap slots. C'mon, Dems! Own it!"

It's a political ghetto.

Give the homosexuals profile within the convention hall, at a time in which no one is watching; word gets out in the gay community that Obama and the Democrats gave them their due, but MSM doesn't highlight it, and middle America doesn't get creeped out by Obama putting Titus and Failed Hat Mannequin on display for them to see.

"Especially if Romney did all the work Obama misses playing golf and practicing his bowling."

Why doesn't he just bow out?

Seriously.

Jimmy Carter has been getting more popular since he was summarily tossed out of office. At least the DNC thinks so -- which I guess isn't a good indicator -- but it seems that, in general, he's a good deal more popular than he was n 1980. That's a low bar.

If Obama retires, since he's young, he can be the god he always wanted, within a few decades, and be young enough to enjoy it.

The problem with Dems saying that man and man togther in a relationship is just as good as a man and a woman because it is all about lifestyle choice, being happy, and enshrining the right to CHOOOOSE on all relationships...

Is the 'ol slippery slope Scalia warned about.

Why not a man and his 5 wives?

Why not a man who is happiest, embraces freedom and the right to choooose....by knocking up 33 bitches that bear his biodaddy fruit and all without the encumbrances of marriage?

Or a woman that wishes to stay unmarried, for maximum freedom and choice....but wants to pool all benefits that come from marriage with her two partners in their informal lesbian Triad??

Why was it brief and out of primetime?Because substantial parts if the key Democrat demograohic groups are pissed as hell about the gay agenda being jammed down their throats by the inside influencers of the Party.

The problem with Dems saying that man and man togther in a relationship is just as good as a man and a woman because it is all about lifestyle choice, being happy, and enshrining the right to CHOOOOSE on all relationships...

Is the 'ol slippery slope Scalia warned about.

Why not a man and his 5 wives?

Why not a man who is happiest, embraces freedom and the right to choooose....by knocking up 33 bitches that bear his biodaddy fruit and all without the encumbrances of marriage?

Or a woman that wishes to stay unmarried, for maximum freedom and choice....but wants to pool all benefits that come from marriage with her two partners in their informal lesbian Triad??

Why was it brief and out of primetime?Because substantial parts if the key Democrat demograohic groups are pissed as hell about the gay agenda being jammed down their throats by the inside influencers of the Party.

Gabrielle Giffords reminds me of something. Something about civility, the President saying we all need to be nice, quit vilifying the other side and all of that. Must explain the lack of comparisons to Hitler, Nazis, Eva Braun this week. Oh wait.

Cedarford said...The problem with Dems saying that man and man togther in a relationship is just as good as a man and a woman because it is all about lifestyle choice, being happy, and enshrining the right to CHOOOOSE on all relationships...

Is the 'ol slippery slope Scalia warned about.

Why not a man and his 5 wives?

Why not a man who is happiest, embraces freedom and the right to choooose....by knocking up 33 bitches that bear his biodaddy fruit and all without the encumbrances of marriage?

Or a woman that wishes to stay unmarried, for maximum freedom and choice....but wants to pool all benefits that come from marriage with her two partners in their informal lesbian Triad??

Why was it brief and out of primetime?Because substantial parts if the key Democrat demograohic groups are pissed as hell about the gay agenda being jammed down their throats by the inside influencers of the Party.

Exactly.

According to the few gays I know this is PRECISELY what they want: that anyone in any number can get married, including kids and animals.

Yeah, seriously. Their point was it is not up to the government to say who and what can married.

Ann says:"Why do you feel there's more of an entitlement than that? If you have something to say, say it. You kids have the whole internet. Twitter. YouTube. My generation didn't have that. What's this "no voice" business?"

The entertainment industry is very similar to the victim industry. I think that's one reason so many in hollywood are drawn to the democrat party.

Would of been nice if the DNC addressed fatherless in our communities, especially urban and minorities. Remember back 07' President Obama stated 'fatherhood doesn't end at conception'.... Now fatherless is celebrated as having two moms and a toilet seat joke.

They have fun, too. Hell, I did minimum wage when I was young and I still had fun.

As for "those whose jobs have been outsourced", why not those who lost their jobs because the union wouldn't compromise, or those who lost their jobs because the EPA drove the company out of business? Or the ones who lost their jobs because the company was taxed to death?

As for homeless veterans, wait until Oop and the rest of the Lefties need somebody to demonize. Remember the Dick From Illinois comparing the US Army to Hitler's SS and Saddam's thugs? Didn't hear any Lefties objecting.

--The websites of the newspapers Les Echos and Le Figaro reported yesterday that the 75 per cent rate would include other marginal taxes that would in effect render the new rate at 67 per cent. They said it would be limited to salary, with sports and other professional stars able to avoid the tax. ---

I loved Kerry Washington's statement at the DNC convention just now that "You may not be thinking about politics, but politics is thinking about you". If you have to steal, Dems, why steal from Yakov Smirnoff?

So Eva Longoria is opening a steakhouse for women in Las Vegas: "A news release envisions the eatery as 'an updated interpretation of the gilded age when wealth and excessive opulence ruled America's upper-class combined with a modern version of art deco to create a feeling of empowerment, especially for female guests.'"

Nice to see such support for the little guy from a Dem spokesperson. I wonder if she's in favor of repealing the Hollywood tax breaks.

Doing for others is overrated. Neither a borrower nor lender be is still the wise course. But the Oopster would say "That's cold, that's so cold." I've done for an other to the point of setting him up in business and going damn near hungry in order to do so and we'd both rather not see the other ever again. Bad bad business "helping" people. People are unbelievably strong and better off without your help. Of course a son or daughter is another matter.

The problem with Dems saying that man and man togther in a relationship is just as good as a man and a woman because it is all about lifestyle choice, being happy, and enshrining the right to CHOOOOSE on all relationships...

Is the 'ol slippery slope Scalia warned about.

Funny thing about your argument: it's equally valid if you're talking about blacks marrying white people as it is SSM.

@Allie: The constant, nauseating fixation with destroying the wealthy actually does a disservice in that it keeps the average person from realizing that they too will need to sacrifice something. If the econimoc situation is as dire as Obama and Ryan say it is then all will have to pull together to get out of it. Instead, the Democrats are giving people two options to believe:

(1) The whole problem can be solved if we just tax the rich enough. OR

(2) Nobody should move a muscle to pitch in until after the rich have been decimated.

The first is a fairtale, the second is effectively class warfare.

You might think that option (2) is more "fair", however, it still leaves the question of "what to do next" after every millionaire's head has been put on a pike and spit upon.

It's always good to hear John Kerry speak, so I am reminded of what an utter piece of shit he is and so I don't regret my vote for a lousy President who nevertheless was still better than Kerry.

The other Kerry, Kerry Washington, came off as an extremely dumb black woman regurgitating Obama propaganda as the most profound stuff she had ever heard in her life. (Likely true, dumb as shewas...And Axelrod and his team of writers and Obama handlers ought to be proud that Washington thinks so much of the product they hand Obama to look at after he gets back from the gof links)